Our Little Dare Devil

Mia seems to be afraid of nothing. She is full of tricks and wild stunts and she doesn’t seem fazed when she falls or hurts herself. Her latest trick is to climb on anything and everything in order to stand or walk on that apparatus. This includes the coffee table, the dining room table, any type of chair, her rocking horse on wheels (or anything on wheels), Carter’s jeep, the slide, her stroller, beds, stools, couches, and anything else she can hoist herself up on.

She also loves to put her head down on the ground and lift one leg up straight in the air (like she’s trying to do a handstand). We have little gymnastics sessions in our living room from time to time and she really seems to enjoy them. I can’t wait to put her in a gymnastics class when she gets a little bigger!

Her other latest trick is climbing out of her crib. We should have been ready for it since she climbs on everything. I don’t know why we wouldn’t assume she would get out of her crib at any moment. Of course, we were totally blind sided. I think we didn’t worry about it because she has been such a great sleeper. She actually seems to love going to bed and never fusses for a second when I lay her down for the night.

About two weeks ago however she threw a big fit when I put her in her crib. We tried many things to calm her down but eventually decided to let her cry for a few minutes, hoping she would lie down. Instead, she decided she would climb out since we weren’t going to rescue her. When we heard the loud thump from upstairs we immediately raced up to find her walking out of her room.

Carter also climbed out of his crib at 16 months old.  Remember this picture?  Unfortunately I don't have one of Mia climbing out, she's too quick.

Carter only did this two times in his life so we really didn’t need to come up with a plan B for his sleeping arrangements. Mia on the other hand wouldn't stay put once she learned how to esacpe. We put some big blankets on the floor to cushion her fall for the first night, but once we realized this was going to be an ongoing occurrence, we decided it was not safe. So our little 17 month old is now sleeping on a mattress on the floor.

I never thought she would move to a real bed this early but she seems to be doing awesome with the transition. She gets up to play with her stuffed animals and explore her room every now and then, but she already knows she needs to go back to her mattress to lie down and sleep.

It’s amazing how grown up she looks when she is sleeping on the mattress. It doesn’t seem possible that our baby girl is in this next phase, but we’re so proud of how well she is adjusting. I guess she was simply ready to be done with her crib.

Guests Galore
The first week of August we were lucky enough to have some of our favorite people visit and stay with us.  First, Grandma and Grandpa Baldwin drove up from Florida to stay in Michigan for the whole month of August (they stayed with us for the first night then moved to their rented condo in Grand Haven).  Gigi rode up with them from South Carolina and visited for about a week and a half as well.  And, to top things off, Aunt Lee, Elsa, and Claire drove over from Milwaukee!

We had so much fun, it was so nice spending time with everyone.  We did all kinds of fun activities like visiting Ada Park, Meijer Gardens, the beach, celebrated some birthdays, enjoyed ice cream, visited Grandma and Grandpa Jernstadt, and more.  The kids loved playing together and Carter and Elsa were like two peas in a pod all week.

Here are some pictures from the week:

 

Thanks for coming to visit everyone!  We really enjoyed having you and miss you all. 

Jenny's Tree

This is a picture of Jenny's tree at Frederick Meijer Gardens.  As many of you know, Jenny was our sister-in-law who passed away July 31, 2004.  Jenny's mom had this tree dedicated in her honor with a nice plaque in this gorgeous setting.  Mia is named after her Aunt Jenny (Mia Jennifer) and every year we like to visit Jenny's tree. With the flowing water in the background, it's a truly beautiful place. We visited it this year on July 31 and couldn't have asked for a better day.

Two Zoos

A few weeks ago we took the kids to the Air Zoo and Binder Park Zoo in Kalamazoo.  We went with Grandma Webb, Uncle Mark, Aunt Kathy, and Max.

The Air Zoo had some neat rides for the kids, things that made them feel like they were flying a space shuttle or an airplane, and even a "zero gravity" simulation ride.  Carter had a blast on everything and since the lines were basically non-existent, they were able to ride things again and again.

At Binder Park Zoo, the kids had a blast running around the park, checking out all the animals.  It was an extremely hot day but most of the animals seemed to be out roaming around.  I guess even the shade was hot for them.

 

Carter and Max loved the giraffes the most - especially feeding them.  As you can see below, Mia was pretty nervous about this big "doggy" when we walked out on the overlook area. 

After she got used to them, she actually gave one a treat.  Even Maisy can't compete with this guy's tongue!

Despite the sweltering heat, we all had a really fun day!